#20 - The people most likely to watch a televised debate between political candidates are the most

[Administrator]

Complete Question Explanation

Weaken. The correct answer choice is (B).

Answer choice (A):

Answer choice (B): This is the correct answer choice.

Answer choice (C):

Answer choice (D):

Answer choice (E):

This explanation is still in progress. Please post any questions below!

[Morgan2cats]

Hi PowerScore,

Could you explain why answer B shows the TV debate could help the winner win the election? B basiclly is saying "the voting behavior of another group of people is influenced by reports". I didn't find any clues leading to the winner. Does "voting behavior" implies they would vote for the winner, instead of other candidates?

Thanks!

[Amber Thomas]

Hi morgan2cats!

Let's start by breaking down our stimulus:

Premise 1: The people most likely to watch a televised debate are the most committed members of the electorate.
Premise 2: Therefore, they are most likely to already have made up their minds about who to support.
Premise 3: After a debate, uncommitted viewers are undecided about who won the debate.
Conclusion: Winning a televised debate doesn't help one's chances of winning an election.

How can we critique this argument?

Answer Choice B states: "the voting behavior of people who do not watch a televised debate is influenced by reports about the debate."

People who did not watch the debate a) have not already made up their minds, and b) are not undecided about who won the debate. Therefore, they would have to be reliant upon reports about the debate to know the outcome. You're absolutely right that these reports would influence the non-viewers to vote for the winner of the debate over the other candidates.

I hope this helps!